


Bridges

by energie_vie



Series: Magnetic [11]
Category: The Old Guard (Comics), The Old Guard (Movie 2020)
Genre: Arguing, F/M, Friendship/Love, Light Angst, Mild Language, Mutual Pining, POV Nile Freeman, Pining, Post-Movie: The Old Guard (2020), Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-04
Updated: 2020-12-04
Packaged: 2021-03-10 02:14:53
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,145
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27876701
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/energie_vie/pseuds/energie_vie
Summary: "Booker groans and drags his hand over his face, an all too familiar gesture that means he's tired and exasperated and Nile forgives him for not finishing his sentence. It's not time yet anyway, they still have bridges to build between them and tonight's fight is just one of the many they've built so far."OR: the one with a heated argument right after a very successful honeypot mission.
Relationships: Booker | Sebastien le Livre/Nile Freeman
Series: Magnetic [11]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1987831
Comments: 24
Kudos: 100





	Bridges

**Author's Note:**

> In all honesty, I'm not entirely sure why I rated this M - probably because I'm paranoid, which I fully embrace.
> 
> Also, I guess I'm a fan of these two idiots fighting, as long as they make up in the end (and they always will if _I_ have something to say about it).
> 
> Also also, another title that wasn't taken from or inspired by a song - yay me!
> 
> Last but not least, the usual spam: if you're tired of them dancing around each other, feel free to jump to the [Gooey](https://archiveofourown.org/series/1983568) series, the sequel for this one.
> 
> EDIT: cover art at the end of the story by the wonderful StarWatcher.

Nile hates honeypot missions, regardless of who among them needs to be the actual honeypot. It's mostly a matter of principle because they imply toying with someone's feelings and no matter how big of an asshole or bitch the target is, it still feels wrong. It's even worse when it's someone who appears to be vulnerable or emotionally scarred. Therefore, when Andy suggests this approach, albeit as a last resort, she only grudgingly agrees, hoping it won't really come to that. It does.

\---

'Ok, we've exhausted all other options so, as much as you hate it, kid, we don't really have a choice,' Andy says in a no-nonsense tone, the one that doesn't really leave room for debate.

'I know,' she sighs, completely unhappy with the outcome.

'Let's review. We need access to the building, which Nicky has already handled. We need access to the server room, which we're about to sort and we need the encryption key, which Booker is still working on. Book, an ETA?'

Booker, fully focused on his laptop and with headphones in his ears keeps typing at lightning speed, evidently not having heard her.

'Book!' Andy tries again, a little louder this time but still no response.

'Don't bother,' Nile chuckles, pulling her phone from her front pocket. 'He's probably listening to dubstep at full volume. It makes him feel like a real hacker.'

'What's dubstep?' Joe asks curiously.

'Random noises mashed together that he insists are music,' Nile replies while typing on her phone. 'He says between four and six hours.'

'Did you really just text him Andy's question?' Nicky asks disbelievingly.

'Never disrupt a genius at work,' she replies seriously, watching Booker's lips curl up in a quirky smile. 'Ha! I knew you'd paused it!' she grins triumphantly and Booker rolls his eyes, taking off his headphones and scowling at her.

'I'll get you for this,' he grunts when Nile pokes her tongue out at him.

'One day I'm gonna accidentally shoot you both, just so you know,' Andy mutters.

' _Anyway_ , getting back to our mission,' Quynh says sweetly, frowning at both Andy and Booker. 'There are only three people who have access to the server room: one is the CTO, who's currently out of town, one is the Head of Cyber Security, who's in the hospital after an unfortunate car accident…'

'Which leaves us with this lovely fellow,' Andy carries on, placing an enlarged photo on the coffee table. 'The Server Supervisor.'

'That kinda sounds like a made up job title,' Nile laughs, picking up the photo and taking a long look at the guy.

He seems to be in his late twenties or early thirties at most, though appearances _can_ be deceptive. She herself looks like she's in her mid-twenties though in reality she could be his mother. Or older aunt. He has a mop of brown hair that looks like it hasn't been cut in quite a while and startlingly green eyes. All in all, he's objectively handsome, though Nile very much prefers scruffy blondes with piercing blue eyes. For no particular reason.

'Well, made up or not, this guy has access to the server, which means he knows his shit,' Andy says. 'Now, luckily, we've prepared for the necessity of a honeypot, so we've been keeping tabs on all three potential targets. Nicky, since he was yours to deal with, do share the details.'

'His name is Mark Renick. Thirty-four, divorced, no kids, not on good terms with his ex-wife. Lives by himself in a two-bedroom flat about ten minutes away from the company's HQ. Does a lot of overtime, sometimes during the weekend as well. Doesn't seem to have any friends, though he does have a cat.'

'How the hell do you know he has a cat?' Booker asks, totally bewildered.

'He keeps ordering some special type of cat food online and there are no stray cats on a two-kilometre radius from his apartment building,' Nicky shrugs.

'Damn, you really _did_ do your homework,' Nile whistles.

'You never know what piece of info might come in handy.'

'True, true. Go on.'

'Um, what else? Oh, goes biking almost every Sunday. Sometimes stops at the bar near his workplace for a drink, but he's always alone, so I'm guessing that's our best shot,' Nicky finishes his short presentation.

'Yeap, you're absolutely right,' Andy says, turning towards Nile. 'So, you need to impress him enough for him to ask you to go back to his place. Have a glass of wine, chit-chat, whatever and when you get the opportunity, pour this in his drink.'

'This being what?' Nile asks, suspiciously eyeing the little bag of white powder.

'A mild sedative. He'll pass out in less than five minutes and stay passed out for about forty-five. Find the access card, duplicate it and get out,' Andy explains.

'Won't he know I've drugged him?'

'Not really.'

'How about I leave him a note? You know, "you fell asleep, so I let myself out", that kind of thing?'

Andy studies her for a few moments. 'If it makes you feel any better,' she shrugs and Nile just hums vaguely. 'Good. Now all we have to do is wait for him to be in the mood for a drink.'

\---

'I don't like this,' Booker mumbles for what has to be the tenth time in the last thirty minutes.

'Yes, Seb, I know, you've made it pretty clear the first three times,' she retorts.

They're both in the car, parked in front of the HQ, keeping an eye on the front entrance. It's the third night in a row they're doing this and Nile really hopes this Mark guy decides to unwind at the bar tonight because all this waiting around doing nothing is making her jittery.

'You don't like it either,' Booker grumbles, crossing his arms but never taking his eyes off the building.

'Well, you reminding me is definitely not helping,' she snaps.

'I'm sorry. Are you nervous?'

'Not really. I just wanna get this over with. You know how I feel about honeypot missions. We're basically using him.'

'True. And _you_ know I don't really believe in "the end justifies the means". Well, not anymore I don't,' he adds gloomily. 'But this time this stupid saying which, by the way, isn't even Machiavelli's, does actually apply. We need to get access to that server.'

'I know. Who _did_ say that if not Machiavelli?' Nile asks curiously.

'Some Russian dude. I'll tell you later because right now our guy is exiting the building,' Booker says, switching on his earpiece. 'We have eyes on the target. Fingers crossed we're lucky tonight.'

' _Hear, hear_ ,' Joe laughs.

Nile waits with bated breath as Mark stops in front of the building, wondering if once again he'll hail a taxi and leave immediately. It's nine o'clock on a Friday, maybe he's tired and just wants to chill at home. Mark, however, crosses the boulevard quickly and thirty seconds later disappears into the bar.

'Jackpot,' Booker says, eyes trained on Nile as she switches her own earpiece on.

' _Awesome. Nile, are you on?_ ' Andy asks.

'Yeap.'

' _Good. Wait five more minutes, then go. Remember, you need to get to his place, as tempting as sedating him in the bar may sound._ '

'I know, Andy.'

' _Don't forget to smile_ ,' Joe interjects. ' _And lean into his space a bit once he gets comfortable. And-_ '

'Joe, I don't need pointers on how to flirt, I wasn't born yesterday.'

' _Fine_ ,' he huffs and Nile can practically feel him rolling his eyes. ' _I was just trying to help._ '

'I appreciate it, but I _have_ picked up guys before, so I think I can handle it,' she says, smiling at Booker and shaking her head.

To her surprise, he doesn't smile back and there's a flash of something in his eyes that she can't really find a name for. She cocks her head inquisitively, but Booker doesn't say anything and she really has to go.

'I'm off.'

' _Good luck, kid!_ '

'I'll see you at the safehouse,' Booker says quietly. 'Be careful!'

Nile sighs as she watches him drive away.

\---

'Hi! Do you mind if I join you?'

Nile lifts her head from her phone, schooling her features into a neutral, yet slightly inviting expression.

She's been sitting alone at the table for about half an hour, carefully ignoring Mark, who's been sipping from a glass of whiskey at the bar. Every few minutes she has been checking her watch, sighing irritatedly and rolling her eyes. Five minutes ago she had hailed a server, asking for another Martini. Meanwhile, the voices in her ear have been constantly nagging her about her approach, Joe and Andy being the loudest.

' _Kid, I **swear** you're playing with fire!_' Andy had gritted after the first ten minutes.

' _Yeah, I don't get your MO either,_ ' Joe had added, followed by Nicky's uncertain ' _I'm sure she has a plan. Right?_ '

Nile had stayed quiet, taking slight offence at their lack of faith.

'Actually, I'm waiting for someone,' she smiles tentatively and Mark raises both eyebrows.

'Well, no offence, but I don't think they're coming.'

A bit cocky, Nile thinks and she feels like rolling her eyes. Instead, she bristles visibly.

'How would _you_ know?'

'You've been here for at least thirty minutes. I'd say that's a pretty good bet.'

'Well, I hope you're not a sore loser,' she replies a bit coldly, narrowing her eyes and Mark's smile falters.

'Not in the slightest. Sorry for bothering you,' he says, turning on his heels and heading back to the bar.

Nile counts to three, preparing herself for the uproar.

' _What the hell are you doing?_ ' Joe.

' _Kid, you'd better have a follow-up or I swear I'll strangle you!_ ' Andy.

' _You sure have a weird way of picking up guys._ ' Quynh.

' _Nile, this isn't how this usually goes._ ' Nicky.

' _Darling, it seems like you **did** need some pointers._' Booker.

They're all talking over each other, at various intensities and slipping into different languages, she's surprised she's managed to catch all that. And they don't seem to be stopping any time soon, so she turns down the volume, counts to sixty to tune them out and then grabs her bag and her Martini and heads to the bar, sitting on the stool next to Mark.

'You were right,' she says casually and all the voices in her ear suddenly stop. 'I got stood up,' she explains, turning to face him.

Yeah, he's good-looking enough. Wavy brown hair, pretty green eyes, wiry constitution, not very tall. She doesn't need to _totally_ fake it. Only about ninety percent.

'I'm sorry.'

'No, _I'm_ sorry, I shouldn't have been so rude, it's not like it's your fault,' she sighs a bit theatrically. 'Is your offer still available?' she continues shyly.

Mark chuckles, holding out his hand.

'Mark.'

'Savannah,' she smiles, holding out hers.

' _Damn, kid, you're good!_ ' Andy exclaims amidst whistling and clapping.

'So who were you waiting for?' Mark asks a bit too bluntly.

'Um.. blind date,' Nile admits in an embarrassed tone.

'Their loss,' he winks.

'If you say so. It's lame, though. Why would you do that? I mean, just cancel if you don't feel like going anymore but don't leave the other person hanging.'

'Because some people really suck,' Mark says bitterly.

' _Oh, he must be thinking about his ex-wife,_ ' Nicky interjects and Nile clenches her teeth.

'Yeah, I guess you're right. Anyway, no more blind dates for the foreseeable future. It's the third time this happens in less than two weeks so either I'm cursed or online dating is the worst idea ever!'

'I think you're cursed,' Mark laughs.

He has a nice laugh, Nile thinks, giggling back at him.

'Thanks, now I feel a lot better!'

' _Nice banter_ ,' Quynh says, making Nile want to claw her eyes out.

This keeps happening for the next hour at almost regular intervals. The guys add their two cents at random moments, suggesting stuff and commenting on their interaction. They're all obviously well-intentioned but sadly, they're not helping at all.

'Look, um.. I'm gonna be a bit bold, which I normally am not, but I live nearby and.. would you like to come over?'

And this right here is exactly why she hates this type of mission. She doesn't really know Mark, they've only been talking for a little over an hour and he may very well be the biggest douchebag in existence. Still, he seems to be a nice guy who's gone through an unpleasant divorce and she's about to deliver another blow to his self-esteem and trust in other people. However, she reminds herself that he works for a corporation that's involved in a lot of shady activities that hurt many innocent people, so she pushes all moral issues aside and replies in a languid voice.

'You know what? I don't normally do this either, but why not? I just need to go to the restroom first, give me two minutes.'

Once inside, she checks that all the stalls are empty and then mutters in a measured tone.

'Look, I know you guys are trying to be helpful, what with this being my first honeypot and all, but you're kinda achieving the opposite by distracting me. I need you to trust me when I say I can handle this.'

There's a short pause, followed by a chorus of _sorry_ and _we'll be quiet_ and Nile chuckles softly.

' _Of course we trust you, kid, never doubt that,_ ' Andy promises.

'Good, because I'm switching my earpiece off,' she says determinedly.

' _What? Absolutely not!_ ' Booker all but shouts, his booming voice covering all the other objections.

'I wasn't asking for permission,' Nile retorts defiantly.

' _I don't care, it's a stupid idea!_ ' he continues, sounding really worked up.

'I need to focus and I need to be relaxed, so I'm switching it off.'

' _Nile, this is-_ '

' _One hour,_ ' Andy cuts Booker off. ' _If we don't hear from you within one hour, we'll assume something's happened and come after you._ '

'Deal,' Nile says, ignoring Booker's renewed protests and switching the earpiece off.

The silence is pleasantly refreshing.

\---

'Nice place,' she remarks, genuinely impressed.

The flat is spacious, tastefully decorated and surprisingly orderly. There are framed pictures here and there, a couple of potted plants and a fluff monster that meows loudly as soon as Mark closes the front door.

'Well, hello there, sweetie,' Nile coos, crouching to scratch the cat's head. 'What's your name?'

'This is Loki.'

'Why, cause he's mischievous?'

'Nice,' Mark grins at her reference. 'And because he low key hates me,' he adds, which makes Nile laugh out loud.

'Is that right, you big fur ball?'

'Make yourself comfortable, I'll go fix us some drinks. Is wine ok?'

'As long as it's red and expensive,' she deadpans, then snorts when Mark widens his eyes. 'I'm kidding, whatever you have is just fine. Even plain water.'

Mark smiles and shakes his head, disappearing into the kitchen while Nile takes a seat on the couch.

'This is really comfy,' she grins, bouncing up and down a bit when he returns with two glasses and a bottle of red wine.

'Ikea,' he shrugs. 'Is this fancy enough for the lady?' he winks, presenting her the bottle just like a server in an upscale restaurant.

'I'm gonna need to taste it first,' Nile teases.

She's already racking her brain trying to come up with an excuse to send him out of the room when Loki starts meowing again, a lot louder than before.

'Sorry, he must be hungry, I've been out all day. Be right back,' Mark says, heading back to the kitchen.

Well isn't this fortunate. It takes her less than a minute to pull out the sedative from her bag, pour it in his glass and mix it a bit with her finger. By the time he comes back, she's studying the books on the shelves, her own glass in her hand lest they accidentally mix them up.

'All set?' she asks and raises her glass when Mark nods. 'Cheers!' she says, then drinks half of it in one go.

'You know, you're supposed to savour it,' he teases.

'I'm a bit nervous,' she shrugs, smiling tentatively.

'I get it. Here, I'll keep you company,' Mark smiles back, downing the glass and sitting on the couch to pour himself another one.

This night keeps getting better and better, Nile thinks, surreptitiously glancing at her watch. Forty-five minutes to go until she's supposed to check in. Not bad at all.

'Do you think we could play some music?' she asks.

'Sure,' he says, grabbing his phone and scrolling through it a bit.

He picks some nondescript ambiental song that's probably meant to seduce her and Nile feels like giggling. Oh well, at least he's trying. She sits next to him and starts asking random questions about his life, monitoring his increasingly droopy eyes and slurred speech. Andy had been right, in less than five minutes he's out cold.

Nile struggles to get him to lie down and grabs the blanket from one of the armchairs, draping it over him. She then goes through the pockets of his jacket, finding his access card a lot quicker than she would have expected. Duplicating it takes about three minutes, so she looks for a pen and some paper and scribbles a note for him to find when he wakes up.

_You work too much and sleep too little, which is a big no-no. I've let myself out. And before you start feeling bad, thank you for making me forget about my failed blind date. Take care! Savannah_

She's out the door and in a taxi with thirty-five minutes to spare, so she calls Andy gleefully.

'I'm expecting confetti when I get back.'

' _Done,_ ' Andy laughs.

\---

True to her word, Andy throws confetti at her the second she walks through the door while everyone else claps excitedly.

'We're all very sorry for being annoying assholes and for making you feel we were doubting you,' she says seriously.

'It's ok, you had good intentions.'

'Well, you know what they say about the road to hell,' Nicky smiles.

'So, details, chop-chop,' Joe exclaims impatiently. 'How the hell did you move so quickly?' he asks incredulously.

'Hungry cat,' Nile shrugs, then bursts out laughing. 'A cute one, too, black and fluffy,' she adds, pulling the duplicate access card from her bag and handing it to Andy.

'See, Booker, I told you he has a cat!' Nicky exclaims excitedly.

Booker just hums, a weird expression on his face. Now that she's really looking at him, Nile notices the slightly narrowed eyes, the clenched jaw, the twitchy fingers. He's angry and she suspects why. It still pisses her off to no end, so she glares at him scornfully.

'Say it!'

'I have nothing to say,' he mutters stubbornly.

'Yes, you do!' she presses and Booker glares back.

The rest of the guys fall quiet, staring at her, then at Booker, then back at her. Meanwhile, their glaring contest turns into a silent conversation that lasts until Nile tosses him the car keys and grabs her bag.

' _You_ 're driving,' she growls.

Booker grabs his phone and his cigarettes and puts his shoes on.

'Are you seriously leaving the house? Can't you just fight here, like normal people?' Joe exclaims disbelievingly.

'No,' they both snap at the same time.

'I'm getting a headache,' Andy says, pinching the bridge of her nose.

'It's ok, my love, they're just being their weird, usual selves,' Quynh giggles when Nile directs her scowl at her.

The last thing she hears before shutting the door behind her is Nicky's cheerful voice.

'You kids have fun!'

\---

Booker pulls into an almost empty parking lot right under a lamppost, turns off the engine and lights a cigarette. He's rapidly bouncing his right leg and staring vacantly out the window but he still doesn't say anything, which only pisses her off more.

'So?'

'So what?'

'Say what you have to say.'

'I told you, I have nothing to say,' he grits and Nile feels like she's about to explode.

'Then why the hell did we come here?'

'I don't know. You're the one who wanted to leave the safehouse,' he mutters dryly.

'Fine,' she huffs, unbuckling her seatbelt, grabbing her bag from the back seat and unlocking the door.

'What are you doing?' Booker asks.

'Leaving,' she says, getting out of the car and slamming the door forcefully.

God, it's like she's in a cheap soap-opera. All that's missing is heavy rain and one of them crying. The latter is definitely not happening but for a split second, she looks at the sky. Nope, full of stars, so no rain either.

'Are you insane? You can't just walk home!' Booker yells and it looks like he got out of the car too.

'Why not?'

'Because it's too dangerous!' he snaps, frowning furiously at her.

'Leaving aside the fact that I used to be a god damn soldier _and_ I know how to take care of myself, I literally. Can't. Die!' she snaps back, punctuating the last three words.

'That doesn't mean you have to be reckless, does it?'

'Oh, wow. That's rich coming from the most reckless of us all! What's the real problem, huh?'

Booker just glares at her, lips tightly shut and Nile loses it.

'I hate it when you do this! It's like I'm having an argument all by myself because your contribution to it is almost nonexistent!'

She takes a deep breath and exhales slowly, then continues in a dangerously low voice.

'Seb, if you want this to work,' she says, gesturing between the two of them, 'you need to talk to me. I can't talk for the both of us, it's not fair.'

Booker stares at her for a few seconds and she can literally see the moment he makes up his mind. It's like a switch being hit.

'Ok. You want me to talk? I'll talk. I didn't like the fact that you had to be the honeypot. At all. And it didn't have anything to do with the guy. It's dangerous and risky and if you never have to do it again I'll be deliriously happy. But as if that in itself wasn't enough, you also decided that turning your earpiece off is a fucking good idea when in fact it was stupid and reckless and I'm so angry about it that I feel like smashing something!'

He's all riled up, chest heaving and eyes blazing and Nile thinks she gets it, but not really because he's still not saying everything that's on his mind.

'Do you trust me?' she asks.

'What?'

'Do you trust me?'

'What kind of question is that? Of course I do, with my life,' he replies heatedly.

'Then you need to trust me with _mine_ as well,' Nile replies simply and she watches Booker's expression morph into one of pure frustration.

'But that's not the point!' he shouts.

'Then what _is_ the point?' she shouts back. 'Because you're holding back and I really hate having to fucking guess what's actually going through your head.'

'You can't do this to me!' he roars. 'You can't just decide to fly off the radar without thinking what it does to _me_ , ok? Because you mean too much to me and if I lose you I swear I…'

Booker groans and drags his hand over his face, an all too familiar gesture that means he's tired and exasperated and Nile forgives him for not finishing his sentence. It's not time yet anyway, they still have bridges to build between them and tonight's fight is just one of the many they've built so far.

'You will never lose me,' she says with conviction and it will have to do for now.

Booker leans against the car and lights a cigarette. The light from the lamppost is warm and golden and it envelops him beautifully, making him look almost ethereal. It's a cheesy thought, she knows it, but she doesn't really care because this is what being in love is all about.

She looks at him for a couple of moments, committing the image to memory, then goes to lean against the car next to him. She fishes his cigarettes from his left pocket and lights one of her own, smiling goofily when he throws his left arm around her shoulders and pulls her close to kiss her temple.

'I'm sorry I overreacted,' Booker murmurs.

'And I'm sorry I scared you.'

'It's ok,' he says quietly, extinguishing his cigarette with his shoe. 'Wanna go home now?'

'Not really.'

'What do you wanna do then?'

'Stay here for a little while,' Nile replies, snuggling deeper under his arm.

'Ok, darling,' he chuckles, lighting another cigarette. 'Whatever you want.'

\---

**Author's Note:**

> You can also find me on [Tumblr](https://energievie.tumblr.com/) in case you wanna say hi 😊💜


End file.
